"The fact is that one new idea..." - Quote by Thomas Jefferson
The fact is that one new idea leads to another, that to a third and so on through a course of time, until someone, with whom no one of these ideas was original, combines all together, and produces what is justly called a new invention.
More by Thomas Jefferson
“The purpose of government is to enable the people of a nation to live in safety and happiness. Government exists for the interests of the governed, not for the governors.”
“To all of which is added a selection from the elementary schools of subjects of the most promising genius, whose parents are too poor to give them further education, to be carried at the public expense through the college and university. The object is to bring into action that mass of talents which lies buried in poverty in every country, for want of the means of development, and thus give activity to a mass of mind, which, in proportion to our population, shall be double or treble of what it is in most countries.”
“I will not believe our labors are lost. I shall not die without a hope that light and liberty are on a steady advance.”
More on Innovation
“(Talking about his first computer) Like all kids we not only fooled around with our toys, we changed them. If you've ever watched a child with a cardboard carton and a box of crayons create a spaceship with cool control panels, or listened to their improvised rules, such as "Red cars can jump all others," then you know that this impulse to make a toy do more is at the heart of innovative childhood play. It is also the essence of creativity.”
“Every idea appears at first as a strange visitor, and when it begins to be realized, it is hardly distinguishable from fantasy.”
“The new statement is always hated by the old, and, to those dwelling in the old, comes like an abyss of skepticism.”
More on Invention
“My main purpose in life is to make enough money to create ever more inventions…. The dove is my emblem…. I want to save and advance human life, not destroy it…. I am proud of the fact that I have never invented weapons to kill….”
“My main purpose in life is to make money so I can afford to go on creating more inventions.”
“One must be an inventor to read well. There is then creative reading as well as creative writing.”